What you need to know about the T1 General income tax form

Tax season can be a chance to take charge of your financial health, but to help successfully navigate the process, it’s important to understand what you need to collect and the forms you have to file.

What is a T1 General income tax form?

The primary document you need to file personal income taxes in Canada is the Income Tax and Benefit Return Form, better known as the T1 General Tax Form. It summarizes all of your income, including investment income and taxes paid throughout the tax year. It is essential to accurately report your financial activities to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).

Who should fill out a T1 General Tax Form?

As a Canadian resident, you must fill out and file a T1 form for every tax year, whether you’re employed by a company, self-employed or earn taxable income from other sources like a pension or investments.

Where can I get a T1 form?

The easiest way to get a copy of a T1 form is by visiting the Get a T1 income tax package page on the CRA website. From there, choose the tax package link for the year you’re filing and select the province or territory to download the correct forms.

How do I fill out a T1 form?

When filling out a T1 form, you need to provide personal details, document all income sources and calculate net and taxable income.

There are five main sections in a T1 form:

1. Identification: This section includes all your personal details, including your full name, social insurance number (SIN), address and marital status. If you have a business, fill out the business identification section.
2. Total income: This section includes all sources of income in the tax year, such as employment income, self-employment income, commissions, investment income, rental income and disability benefits and social assistance payments. Some types of income, such as taxable capital gains, also require you to complete a separate schedule form before reporting the final income amount on the T1 form.
3. Net income: This is your income after any expenses get deducted. Some examples of allowable expenses you may be able to claim include childcare expenses, moving expenses and RRSP deductions.
4. Taxable income: This includes all of your income, both from your employment and your investments, less any deductions you are eligible for, including capital losses incurred outside of your registered accounts. The CRA taxes the resulting income based on rates for the calendar year.
5. Refund or balance owing: This section shows the amount of money owed to CRA or the refund you’ll receive. If you owe tax and fail to pay by the deadline, you’ll get charged 5% of your unpaid bill the next day, plus 1% for each month your return is late, up to 12 months.

While these are the key sections of a T1 form, other sections may apply, depending on your situation. Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) contributions, charitable giving, health expenses, daycare, news subscriptions and work-from-home expenses are just a few of the other sections you’ll want to investigate when filling out your taxes.

T1 form versus a Notice of Assessment

A T1 form and a Notice of Assessment (NOA) are both general information forms that summarize your tax returns, but they have some key differences. The main one is that a T1 form is filled out before you file your taxes, while a NOA is a summary the CRA provides you after you file. The NOA also includes other valuable information, such as your updated RRSP contribution limits.

One last note for tax filers: if, by chance, you make a mistake on your T1 form, you must wait until you get your NOA to file an adjustment or amendment request. The CRA allows you to request a change to a tax return for the previous ten calendar years.

Make the most of your refund.

There’s never a good reason to miss the tax deadline. If you owe money, getting your taxes done early will give you more time to ensure you have enough money to pay and avoid late filing penalties. If you’re due a tax refund, the sooner you file (as early as February 19), the sooner you can make that money start working for you. Consider reinvesting those dollars into a tax-efficient account such as your RRSP or a Tax-Free Savings Account.

If you want a quick way to estimate your 2024 tax bill, check out Fidelity’s tax calculator, which will help you plan ahead.